starting fresh with a farm

[Alice]

Hi,

I am the new director of a food studies program at an urban women's
college. They were given (!!) a 300 acre farm outside the city and
we're trying to figure out how to start up a CSA and a farm market.
Some of the professors started an organic garden immediately and did a
work-and-pick program. They also ran a may term organic gardening
class and used the garden in their courses. And every week they ran a
small farm market back on the urban campus for students -- mostly they
hardly charged at all because they wanted students to use the
vegetables.

I would love any information or advice you can give us about how to
start this up on a bigger scale. The CSA would also be a teaching
tool for the food studies program.

thanks in advance,

Alice

[Shaffer, Julie]

Alice,
In my experience running the market and the CSA at Emory, they are more teaching tools than viable economic endeavors. . We think that's ok, and the farmers involved are happy to be participate. We are an urban research university, and have no gardening/agriculture classes. I will say that after a very slow, hot, summer we have decided not to run the market duing the summer when the students are not here.

As to how to build your program, I'd say marketing/PR is really important to get your customer base. We have also held many special events with chef demos and harvest celebrations, and just really broadcast them to the wider community.

Best of luck to you in building your program.

Julie Shaffer, Emory University

________________________________________
From: campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com [campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Alice [apju...@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, September 21, 2009 9:47 PM
To: CampusFarmersMarketNetwork
Cc: aju...@chatham.edu
Subject: starting fresh with a farm

Hi,

thanks in advance,

Alice

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[Harry and Elaine Hamil]

Alice,

 

So much depends on where you are located (season constraints), how far away the farm is and existing local farmers markets.   It is very important that you are well integrated into your local agriculture community.

 

The spectrum goes from an internally oriented market (e.g., Warren Wilson College near Asheville, NC) to using your farm like an anchor store is in a mall for a market adjacent or even on the campus.  A good example of an adjacent market is the Davidson Farmers Market in Davidson, NC.  Warren Wilson is located in a relatively decentralized population area that support a couple of dozen seasonal markets in a circle with a radius of 20 miles with the centered on Asheville.  Davidson is about 25 miles from the center of Charlotte and a circle centered in Charlotte would need probably 35-40 mile radius to get that many markets and population of a couple of million (?)

 

Of course all of that can be shaped based upon the goals your college has for integrating the farm and farmers market into the college community and its curriculum.  Warren Wilson has a strong Environmental Studies Major with a Sustainable Ag track and its farm surrounds 3 sides of the campus.  Davidson doesn't have that strong curriculum tie, no farm and its farmers market was created by those outside the school and members of the schools staff and student body invited to participate.

 

Finally, I believe your having a farm might create the opportunity for a joint venture with another college(s) that could open all sorts of opportunities because it could provide enough crops so the farm could serve as a foundational component for a dozen markets.

 

I advocate lots of small markets versus fewer larger markets.  The critical mass to create a small market can be one well run farm growing 2 dozen well chosen crops.  Here in Black Mountain, NC we have a very successful tailgate market that is anchored by a diversified certified organic farm (Jake's Farm) and a cooperative marketing group of  nearby farms (Foothills Family Farms).  They assure the critical mass of crops and with 8 part-time growers, 5 value added producers, from 4 - 10 artisans and the opportunity for day vendors including children to fill out the mix.  Over our 6 month season, we have more variety than I found in the huge Santa Barbara, CA market in September 2008.

 

Harry Hamil

Black Mountain Farmers Market -- a year-round store for local food, not a seasonal vendor market

828/669-4003 - greenhouse & home (where I usually am)

828/664-0060 - the market (10 - 6, M-S)

 

 

 

 

 

----- Original Message -----

From: "Alice" <apju...@gmail.com>

To: "CampusFarmersMarketNetwork" <campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com>

Cc: <aju...@chatham.edu>

Sent: Monday, September 21, 2009 9:47 PM

Subject: starting fresh with a farm

>

[Zachary Lyons]

Consider accepting Food Stamps/EBT for both the market and the CSA.  Many students are on Food Stamps, and it is possible that your campus Market/CSA can also serve as a great source for members of your community at large who are on Food Stamps.  Look at Food Stamps as a multi-billion dollar federal stimulus package for farmers, if organized right.  Plus, it will get your market excellent press.

For more info on a farm in Bellingham, Washington that has gone 100% Food Stamps for their CSA, check out my article in NewFarm.org:

http://www.rodaleinstitute.org/20080317/nf1

Before starting up with a Food Stamp CSA, read this article carefully, as there are certain ways you need to word your application with USDA to get signed up with the program.

As for the other comment about markets going small and numerous versus large, I must disagree in part.  Here in Seattle, and throughout Washington, we have many different sizes of markets, and most of them work just fine.  But a market must be of is community -- tailored to it -- if it is going to work, so a one-size-fits-all approach, be that size large or small, is problematic at best.  Also, USDA research has shown that markets with 20 or more vendors tend to fair better, the theory being that when customers have more choices, they are more comfortable buying stuff, generally then regularly patronizing the same 5-6 farms each week.

Think about it.  If you have only one farmer with lettuce to choose from, while you may go ahead and buy it, you go away feeling like you wish you had more choices, right?  Otherwise, you could just go to the grocery store and get one choice of lettuce.  But if there are five farmers with lettuce, you can choose which head of lettuce appeals to you the most, and which farmer, for that matter.  Just like every market will need to fit its community, every customer is different, too, and while one farmer appeals to me, another might appeal to you.  We drive different cars, listen to different music, live in different neighborhoods, eat at different restaurants and wear different clothes.  Why should we all eat the same lettuce and connect with the same farmer?

Zachary Lyons

Seattle Farmers Market Association

[Laurie Cousart]

 

Fyi

 

http://sev.prnewswire.com/agriculture/20090922/SF7924222092009-1.html

 

 

 

[eric ballard]

Alice

My name is Eric Ballard and I am a recent graduate from North Carolina State University with a degree in Agricultural Extension and Communication and a minor in Agroecology.  Over the course of my senior year I successfully petitioned for a local farmers market to be hosted on campus by our student Government.  I created, developed and organized the markets handbook, legal documents, student organization, board of directors and vendors list. 

I have a lot of experience in the area of campus farmer's markets and know a lot about the procedures and types of problems that come from this type of project. 

Currently I am working for a small farm in Louisburg, NC as a marketing agent and helping them to expand both their CSA and their presence within other local farmers markets. 

I would be glad to help you, Alice, with any direct questions or concerns you may have.  If you would also like to speak over the phone as just a sort of brainstorming session I would also be glad to do so.  Just let me know what you'd like from me and I'd be glad to help you anyway I can! 

Eric Ballard
NCSU Campus Farmer's Market, Director

[Julier, Alice]

Thanks, Eric. I would love to talk to you. This network has been a great help already. I'll send you my number and hope we can talk soon.

I think my current concern is that we have to hire someone to be a farm manager -- and that person has to be able to work with students and faculty to teach them sustainable growing methods. I also wonder what the minimal equipment would be (a tractor, but what else?) and how much I expect it to cost for us to start it up. I imagine it's sustaining it rather than starting it that's hard, but I could be entirely wrong..

Alice

________________________________________
From: eric ballard [ejba...@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 8:35 PM
To: campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com
Cc: Julier, Alice
Subject: Re: starting fresh with a farm

Alice

My name is Eric Ballard and I am a recent graduate from North Carolina State University with a degree in Agricultural Extension and Communication and a minor in Agroecology. Over the course of my senior year I successfully petitioned for a local farmers market to be hosted on campus by our student Government. I created, developed and organized the markets handbook, legal documents, student organization, board of directors and vendors list.

I have a lot of experience in the area of campus farmer's markets and know a lot about the procedures and types of problems that come from this type of project.

Currently I am working for a small farm in Louisburg, NC as a marketing agent and helping them to expand both their CSA and their presence within other local farmers markets.

I would be glad to help you, Alice, with any direct questions or concerns you may have. If you would also like to speak over the phone as just a sort of brainstorming session I would also be glad to do so. Just let me know what you'd like from me and I'd be glad to help you anyway I can!

Eric Ballard
NCSU Campus Farmer's Market, Director

[Julier, Alice]

wow thanks

________________________________________
From: campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com [campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Laurie Cousart [cou...@pobox.upenn.edu]
Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 2:57 PM
To: campusfarmers...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Bon Appetit and Student Garden Guide

Fyi

http://sev.prnewswire.com/agriculture/20090922/SF7924222092009-1.html